worry
Americanverb (used without object)
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worries,
present (3rd person singular)
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worried,
past participle, past
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worrying
present participle
-
to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts; fret.
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to move with effort.
an old car worrying uphill.
verb (used with object)
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worries,
present (3rd person singular)
-
worried,
past participle, past
-
worrying
present participle
noun
-
worries
plural
-
a worried condition or feeling; uneasiness or anxiety.
- Synonyms:
- fear, misgiving, disquiet, solicitude, apprehension
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a cause of uneasiness or anxiety; trouble.
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the act of worrying.
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Fox Hunting. the action of the hounds in tearing to pieces the carcass of a fox.
verb phrase
idioms
verb
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to be or cause to be anxious or uneasy, esp about something uncertain or potentially dangerous
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(tr) to disturb the peace of mind of; bother
don't worry me with trivialities
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(intr; often foll by along or through) to proceed despite difficulties
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to struggle or work
to worry away at a problem
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(tr) (of a dog, wolf, etc) to lacerate or kill by biting, shaking, etc
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to bite, tear, or gnaw (at) with the teeth
a dog worrying a bone
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(tr) to move as specified, esp by repeated pushes
they worried the log into the river
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(tr) to touch or poke repeatedly and idly
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obsolete to choke or cause to choke
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informal you need not worry
noun
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a state or feeling of anxiety
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a person or thing that causes anxiety
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an act of worrying
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informal an expression used to express agreement or to convey that something is proceeding or has proceeded satisfactorily; no problem
Usage
What are other ways to say worry? The noun worry means “a worried condition or feeling.” How does worry compare to synonyms care and concern? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Synonym Usage
Worry, annoy, harass all mean to disturb or interfere with someone's comfort or peace of mind. To worry is to cause anxiety, apprehension, or care: to worry one's parents. To annoy is to vex or irritate by continued repetition of interferences: to annoy the neighbors. Harass implies long-continued disturbance, torment, or persecution: to harrass a creditor.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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worrysimple
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worriessimple
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have worriedperfect
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has worriedperfect
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am worryingprogressive
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are worryingprogressive
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is worryingprogressive
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have been worryingperfect progressive
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has been worryingperfect progressive
Past
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worriedsimple
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had worriedperfect
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was worryingprogressive
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were worryingprogressive
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had been worryingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of worry
First recorded before 900; Middle English weryen, werwen, wyrwyn “to strangle, bite, harass,” Old English wyrgan “to strangle”; cognate with German würgen
Explanation
The verb worry is an anxious word; it means to be concerned or nervous. If you sent your carrier pigeon out in the morning to deliver a message, you might worry if it hadn't returned by the afternoon. When you worry, you feel uneasy — the way you might worry that you've got spinach in your teeth when you're at a job interview. When it's an animal doing the worrying, it takes on a different meaning: a dog will worry a bone — or gnaw on it and play with it, for hours. The word worry comes from the Old English wyrgan, which originally meant "strangle," and changed over the years to mean first "harass," and then "cause anxiety to."
Vocabulary lists containing worry
Motherlode: A Mother's Day Lexicon
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 5
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Mother's Day Words: What Mothers Do
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A coach lives and dies by every Saturday and has to worry about far too many things for Messi's liking.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
Voters worry about job losses, safety and regulation -- but increasingly also about the giant data centers needed to power AI.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
“Everyone is struggling. For day-to-day commuters, this is another thing they have to worry about,” Frias said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
The rapid empire building has stirred unease in Hollywood, where filmmakers and other talent worry that concentrating so much production and distribution under one owner could give them fewer places to sell their work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
I want to tell him not to worry, but my throat coats with tears again.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Borrowing costs rising alongside worries about government finances and purchasing power can be a warning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
"The charity held me, allowed me to let go of my worries and fears and gave me space to make sense of things," she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
It stopped its own airlines from flying between Dubai and Tel Aviv for several months this year amid worries about security gaps and the risks posed by the war against Iran.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
But that is the lesser of the worries.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
But I laughed off her worries and reassured her I’d be fine.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
The deal comes as AI data centers gobble up power, leaving companies worried about their ability to secure sufficient energy for future endeavors.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
He added he was worried about the cost of losing a day's business and of replacing the door.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
Other European automakers are openly worried about the influx of new rivals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
But the siblings worried about Walker’s mental health, and agreed he needed to be institutionalized.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
Though he would not say it, the innkeeper was worried about not being paid.
From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios
This makes the recent fall in the markets more worrying - since households, already struggling from a weak job market, high inflation and faltering consumption, are now seeing their equity savings take a beating too.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Noah Bell attended the Edgarstown event in support of the Portadown District and said he believed the situation was "really worrying" and wanted the parade to be allowed to proceed.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
I couldn’t remember worrying about inflation since late winter—I, who had worried lifelong about running out of money.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
The worrying reality is that millions of people are still living with the condition without knowing it and missing opportunities for early diagnosis and treatment.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026
Morgan Stanley’s elite bond traders did not spend a lot of time worrying about this.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
